


give up the ghost

by moonsoaked



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Canon Compliant, Earth C (Homestuck), F/M, The Homestuck Epilogues: Candy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-28
Updated: 2020-08-28
Packaged: 2021-03-06 22:47:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 662
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26156746
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moonsoaked/pseuds/moonsoaked
Summary: Dave and Jade get married.
Relationships: Dave Strider/Karkat Vantas, Jade Harley/Dave Strider
Comments: 2
Kudos: 15





	give up the ghost

**Author's Note:**

> This was written as a rp starter but I think it works as a stand-alone too! Enjoy!

It’s flowery, green and bespoke.

The wedding dress, that is.

Kanaya says it isn’t her best work, I Mean What Can You Do Jade Time Flies When You Have Human Supremacist Governments To Overthrow. But Jade disagrees. It’s wonderful. Embroidered evergreen branches creeping up the opaque mesh of her bodice, fennel darting coyly in-between, as flowering vegetables make their home around her chest and hips, following the natural curve of her frame. The only interruption: a small, green ribbon clipping her in at the waist before the fabric is freed, gently cascading outwards.

It’s not just pretty flowers, Kanaya explains, it’s the things that Jade grows, the things that Jade works on. Flowering snap peas, carrots, kale; bolting, going to seed early, going in for one last hurrah, so that they could create something new.

A welcoming gift, Rose says, smile gentle. And the far-off sounds of imperial drone factories suddenly seem much closer to Jade.  
  
-  
  
‘—is it surprising that I was the one who proposed?’ She laughs, smiling at her close friends and family. ‘Personally, I don’t think doing it under Jake’s butt billboard was the best idea at the time, but I guess… time and place are in short supply these days!’ There is an unintentional euphemism in there that the audience could read into, but no one really does. Because, they think, it’s Dave and Jade.

‘So, it’s important to do it when it matters!’ Jade says. Her voice is urgent, wavering. She remembers the speech Roxy gave at her dead teen-self’s funeral years and years ago. About valuing what they had, the wonderful, precarious nature of their existence, the infinitesimal odds of such an outcome. And, on the eve of everything possibly going more to shit than it already has, she is really vibing with that.

Jade beams down at her soon-to-be husband, and maybe it’s a little forced, a little contrived, but she means every word. She loves him. She wants to do the right thing.

Did Karkat get their invitation? She wonders if he will turn up. They don’t talk about him. Not in proper words. He is present though, in Dave’s speech and mannerisms, a warmth; an echo of words from a dear friend who is both there and not. Sometimes Jade wonders, ‘Is that your opinion or his?’

She misses him too. Not in the same way as Dave. No, in a way that is very ragged and confused, pockmarked with deep valleys and knotted keloids. An old, ugly scar hiding something that was desperate, grasping and very sixteen. A moment that passed ages ago. A moment she gave never gave up on until it soured.

The ballroom is flooded in the eerie orange embers of the sun. Hazy clouds of smog erupt from the nearby factories. The surrounding landscape looks blurred and uncertain, as if being filtered through frosted glass. Fumes of rotten eggs and cake batter threaten overtake Jade’s senses.

So she downs a bit too much of her champagne and turns to Dave, ‘So, um, I’m glad I’m doing with this you.’ Jade is nervous, even though she’s used to being open about her affection nowadays, this feels different. Like all the hints, winks and attempts at physical affection are a defense, hiding something of hers that is tender and raw.

‘We’ve been through a lot. God, this is gonna sound so cheesy, but it’s my wedding so fuck it!’ She takes a deep breath, ‘You’ve never made me feel stupid, you walked me through stuff in the game when I felt lost and angry, even if sometimes—’ Jade cuts herself off, not right now. ‘Anyways, you’re still the same dork you always were, but you’ve grown so much as a person! And that’s really amazing and I’m so happy I got to see that. So… thank you for doing this with me.’

The wind feels like it’s been knocked out of her but, at that moment, Jade has no regrets.

**Author's Note:**

> Candy Jade... my biggest frustration, my biggest muse.


End file.
